Silverstone: Tech 1 Racing event summary

Winning the teams' title, great - but the aim is the drivers' crown!
Thanks to a very good weekend at Silverstone in terms of points, plus a
victory for Jean-Eric Vergne on Saturday and a double podium finish on
Sunday, Tech 1 Racing needs only...

Winning the teams' title, great - but the aim is the drivers' crown!

Thanks to a very good weekend at Silverstone in terms of points, plus a
victory for Jean-Eric Vergne on Saturday and a double podium finish on
Sunday, Tech 1 Racing needs only 1 point to win the teams' title in the
2010 Formula Renault 3.5 Series. The outcome of the battle for the
drivers' crown is on a knife edge. Before the final in Barcelona, Daniel
Ricciardo is only 3 points behind the championship leader. The Australian
has to win the last two rounds to be sure of bagging the title.

125,000 spectators turned up at Silverstone last weekend and what they
saw in the World Series by Renault races more than met their
expectations. Since 2009, the mythic British circuit has undergone a
revamp but its high-speed philosophy remains intact.

Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne, set the second and
twelfth-quickest times in the free test sessions, as they calmly
fine-tuned their setups. On Saturday, the two Red Bull Junior Team
drivers in the light aero setup confirmed their promising performances by
setting the third and fourth fastest times in qualifying with Ricciardo
just in front of Vergne.

So it was all looking very promising for the first race of the weekend
until it all went wrong at the start. Ricciardo was about to go into the
lead when he was punted off by Jon Lancaster. Vergne took advantage of
this to take second place where he finished after driving a perfect race
at very high speed. He was then awarded victory when Esteban Guerrieri
was disqualified.

The team spent the whole night rebuilding Ricciardo's car and their
reward came on Sunday morning when the Australian set pole position for
the second race. Vergne completed the French squad's joy with third
place. Ricciardo led for the whole race and had opened up a gap after the
tyre change. But he was unable to fend of Guerrieri and saw the flag in
second place. Vergne rounded off his excellent weekend with third spot.

"To say that we had mixed feelings after the first race would be a bit
of an understatement," analysed Simon Abadie, the Tech 1 Racing team
manager. "We're delighted with Jean-Eric's first victory in the
Formula Renault 3.5 Series even if it's due to a disqualification. It's
a win, and he's learning very quickly. Today, he's as fast as the best
drivers in the championship. We're very pleased with his results.

"On the other hand, Daniel was punted off the track by Jon Lancaster. It
meant no points and an all-nighter for the mechanics. By setting pole
Daniel thanked them in the best possible fashion. He looked like he was
going to win on Sunday until he fell asleep at the end of the race! He
let Esteban Guerrieri catch him and overtake him in the second-last lap.
He was a bit too nice, and now he realises it. But in terms of points
he's now only three behind Mikhail Aleshin. He holds his fate in his
hands. If he wins both races on the Barcelona circuit, he won't have to
do any calculating - he'll be champion.

"Jean-Eric Vergne has every reason to be satisfied with his weekend with
a victory and a podium. On Sunday, he wasn't able to match the pace of
the first two, which shows that he still has a lot of room for
improvement. His two results and Daniel's second place have given us the
teams' title - well almost. We still lack a point so we've got 99.9%
chances of winning it for the third time. Three titles in five years in
the Series means a lot. But for us this year, the main aim is to win the
drivers' championship. It's important for Tech 1 Racing, for Daniel
Ricciardo and also for the Red Bull Junior Team. We're going to do
everything in our power to finish the job in Barcelona."

Rendezvous on 9th and 10th October for the last two races of the season.
Two crucial rounds in which Daniel Ricciardo and Tech 1 Racing will have
to surpass themselves.